The first of Chris Getz’s predicted action took place Friday afternoon, as the White Sox made a move to shore up their bullpen. Multiple reports indicate the team has agreed to a two-year, $20 million contract with free-agent reliever Seranthony Dominguez, answering a big question about the back end of the White Sox bullpen. ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported that Dominguez, 31, is expected to serve as the White Sox closer.
Right-handed reliever Seranthony Domínguez and the Chicago White Sox are in agreement on a two-year, $20 million contract, sources tell ESPN. Dominguez, 31, is expected to close for the White Sox, who use the money saved in the Luis Robert Jr. deal to continue adding this winter.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 23, 2026
Originally signed by the Philadelphia Phillies out of the Dominican Republic, Dominguez enters his eighth year in the big leagues after reaching the World Series with Toronto last season. His career ERA sits at 3.50, and he’s coming off his career-high in innings pitched in 2025 at 62.2. Dominguez finished with a 3.16 ERA in 2025 splitting time between Baltimore and Toronto, and he allowed four earned runs over 11.1 innings for the Blue Jays in the Postseason. He’ll now join Jordan Leasure, Mike Vasil, and Grant Taylor in the back-end of what the White Sox hope will be an improved bullpen.
Dominguez brings an elite pitch mix to the White Sox bullpen
Looking at Dominguez’s stuff, it’s easy to see why the White Sox liked him. His fastball averages almost 98 MPH and he mixes in a nasty Sweeper and Splitter as his off-speed offerings. Dominguez offers big-time strikeout stuff in the bullpen, and hitters often don’t make good contact when they do hit the ball. He runs into the most trouble with his control. Dominguez walked 36 hitters in 62.2 innings in 2025, and his 13.8% walk rate was among the highest in baseball for qualified pitchers. His career norm for walk rate is closer to 8-9%, so the White Sox may believe that the uptick last season was an outlier. When at his best, he has the arsenal to be one of the nastiest relievers in baseball, but can sometimes be let down by his command.
A $10 million commitment over the next two years is a hefty price for a reliever, especially for a team with other needs, but the White Sox have been outspoken about their desire to upgrade their late-inning relief options all offseason, and this deal certainly qualifies. Freeing up $22 million by trading Luis Robert Jr. certainly made Chris Getz feel more comfortable offering Dominguez this type of deal. The trio of Grant Taylor, Jordan Leasure, and Seranthony Dominguez should be a more-than-formidable group for the late innings, and should take some pressure off the White Sox young starting pitching. Though Dominguez hasn't been a mainstay as an MLB closer, he's saved 40 games throughout his eight-year career, so he's no stranger to the ninth inning. He'll be a welcome addition to the White Sox pen.
The White Sox still have needs in the outfield and in the starting rotation, so I suspect this isn’t the final roster move we see go down before the team heads to Spring Training in just a few short weeks. But it’s a high-upside move that certainly makes the White Sox a better team for 2026.
It sure feels nice to make a move and feel confident that the team just got better.